Search This Blog

OFFENDED PART THREE

In our first part,
entitled: ‘You Bigot, Can Political Correctness Keep People from Being
Offended,?’ we looked at how political correctness tries to protect people
(especially women, ethnic and sexual minorities) from being offended. As a
result, ‘freedom of speech’ takes a big hit. Even the slim possibility that one
minorities might be offended means the other party must be closed down
verbally … just in case.

In Part Two, entitled ‘I’m
Offended: What Should This Really Mean?’ we learned a Biblical description
about this miserable condition. It is a more sensible and far more enduring
description than the politically correct one.

Today, the broader
cultural scene is about the ‘New Tolerance.’ Political correctness (PC) is the
mother tongue of the ‘New Tolerance’ and those who lead the charge in
politically correctness are the patron saints. Jonathan Sarfati in ‘The
Tyranny of Tolerance’ says “Not long ago, the word ‘tolerance’ meant ‘bearing or putting up with someone or something not
especially liked.’ However,
now the word has been redefined to ‘all values, all beliefs, all lifestyles,
all truth claims are equal.’ Denying
this makes a person ‘intolerant,’ and
worthy of contempt.’ That’s
putting it mildly.

Failure to conform to the New
Tolerance with politically correct language will invite a torrent of abuse.
This includes, but is not limited to, ridicule, ostracism, ‘shouting down,’ insults,
sensitivity training and the most offensive of behaviour you can imagine, even
though the abusers are doing this to prevent offence! Student organisations on
campus are prohibiting speakers who they deem politically incorrect (normally
social and political conservatives). They even practice ‘non-platforming,’ meaning
they refuse to speak at a public meeting with those whom they disagree.
University heads have been forced out of office for violating PC.

Are things really that bad? Try
speaking positively in the blogosphere about traditional heterosexual marriage,
without saying a negative word about anyone or anything else, and watch what
happens. Accusations like ‘hater,’ ‘intolerant,’ and ‘bigot’ will be thrown at
you. Even Christian organisation are disciplining and firing people who do not
conform to the theology of tolerance.

Why is this phenomena so serious?

A.It enshrines people in a permanent ‘victimhood’ culture,
which is very damaging in the long run. Christians are called to ‘victory,’ not
‘victimhood.’

B.The defenders of the offended become the most offensive of
all (a true double-standard), often times in a very vile manner.

C.Our beloved ‘Freedom of Speech’ comes under serious threat,
to the point of extinction.

D.Finally, this is all an exercise in futility: Protecting
people from offence is a lost cause in a fallen world, and does nothing to help
them grow strong and mature;

A student complained at the Oklahoma
Wesleyan University that he felt ‘uncomfortable,’ ‘offended,’ and ‘victimised’ when
the university president gave a homily about love from I Corinthians 13, which
is the ‘love chapter.’ Yet instead of pandering to the offended student, the
president, Dr. Everett Piper, wrote in a blistering blog that went viral, ‘This
is not a daycare. It’s a university.’ Dr. Piper went on to criticise a
culture that teaches younger people to be ‘self-absorbed and narcissistic.’ Remember,
this was at a Christian university! (http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2015/11/30/president-tells-students-this-is-not-day-care-this-is-university.html. Accessed 19/02/16).

Years ago, this author learned a
maxim: Do not deliberately offend and do not be offended. This is
wisdom! After all, to be offended is like a person who stumbles on the road,
injures himself or herself, but refuses to get up. Another analogy is that an
offended person builds a ‘Berlin Wall’ around themselves. Though this wall is
meant to protect, it actually becomes a self-made prison! As long as the person
remains offended, they will continue to be imprisoned.

So what can we do to avoid getting
offended and offensive? As always, the Word of God is our guide:

1.Be filled with the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18): When you are ‘filled with the Spirit,’ you
have the fruit of the Spirit which includes ‘love,’ ‘joy,’ ‘peace.’ Offended
people lack peace, but Spirit-filled people have enough peace in their own
hearts that they can give the overflow to others. When you are filled with the
Spirit, there is no room for offence;

2.Forgiveness:
People who go around saying they are ‘hurt’ are almost always people who fail
to practice a fundamental Christian virtue - forgiveness. This is not an
option. Forgiveness is Christianity 101. The consequences of not forgiving are
severe - continued ‘hurt’ and God’s refusal to forgive us our sins (Matthew
6:14-15; Matthew 18:32-35; Mark 11:25-26). Forgiveness does not let the other
party off the hook (retribution must not come from us, but God, according to
Romans 12:19); it sets us free from their offensiveness so we can get on with
life. After all, an offensive person is offensive because they have problems;
when they offend you, then they successfully transfer their problem to you - so that their problem becomes yours, too.
Forgiveness sets you free from the other party’s problems and from any hurt
that it causes;

3.Maturity:
Perpetually being offended is a mark of emotional and spiritual immaturity. See
the description of immaturity in I Corinthians 3:1-3. Yet, when you grow up
spiritually, the things that once bothered you bother no more. Hebrews 6:1
exhorts us to aim for perfection (maturity). Mature people let go of petty
offences, press on to fulfil their call; they don’t have time to mope around
being offended;

4.God’s Word in the Heart: One of my favourite verses in the Bible is Psalm
119:165: Great peace have they which love thy law: and nothing shall
offend them. This is a promise worth grasping. When you ‘love God’s law,’ namely,
His Word - you read it, study it, memorise it, and meditate on it regularly -
you actually grow up in such away that you no longer are easily offended. This
is very liberating. The same word in the heart that keeps you from sin (v. 11)
is the Word that protects you from offence.

Put these into practice and say
good-bye to being offended and you can get on fulfilling your spiritual call.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Malaysia is a very special country - beloved by its
citizens and friends worldwide. Malaysia offers a warm welcome, ‘truly Asian’ hospitality,
popular spicy food, tropical weather and scenery, and a dynamic local church.
The following is a prophecy for the Malaysian church given on May 20, 2017 at
Full Gospel Assembly, Kuala Lumpur, (following the introduction). Introduction
to Malaysia (Statistics
courtesy of the CIA World Fact Book) Location: Malaysia
is on a peninsula in SE Asia. Singapore is to the south, Thailand to the north,
and Indonesia is very close by. Two Malaysian states, Sabah and Sarawak, are
located on the island of Borneo to the east of peninsular Malaysia. Borneo is
shared by three nations: Malaysia, Brunei, and Indonesia. Population of Malaysia:
30,949,962; Ethnic groups:
Malay 50%; Chinese 23%; Indigenous 12%; Indian 7%; non-citizens 8%. Religious Affiliation:
Islam 61%; Buddhism 20%; Christian 9%; Hindu 6% Type of Government: Federal
constitutional monarchy with the kin…

It should have
come as no surprise. On Tuesday 8 May 2018, United States President Donald
Trump made the grand announcement - that the United States was withdrawing from
the Iran nuclear deal. He promised to do so during his 2016 Presidential
campaign. He repeatedly made noises about this nuclear deal as being the ‘worst
deal’ he has ever seen. So Mr. Trump has kept his campaign promise. What,
however, does this mean for the world? Is it good news, bad news, or both? For years, the
world has looked with great concern as Iran pursued nuclear power, which, it
consistently proclaimed was only for peaceful purposes. Why did a nation with
10% of the world’s oil and the 2nd largest gas reserves need to go
nuclear? The Islamic Republic has a well-known habit of proclaiming ‘death’ to
America. They predict that Israel will ‘disappear’ within 25 years. Why was
Iran developing ballistic missiles that were able to reach all of the Middle
East and much of Europe? Despite the
regime’s declared peac…

Just
8 1/2 months shy of his 100th birthday, Evangelist Billy Graham (November 7,
1918 - February 21, 2018) died peacefully at his home in Montreal, North
Carolina. His longevity, influence, and role modelling have been epic. In a 60
year plus evangelistic career, it is estimated that he evangelised 210 million
people in 185 nations, with 3.2 million recorded decisions for Christ. His most
famous phrase in preaching: The Bible Says. Graham
met many world leaders and was confidant to 12 US Presidents. He didn’t limit
his ministry to personal appearances: Billy harnessed the media and written
material to get the gospel message out. So well-known and respected was Billy
Graham that he was called ‘America’s Pastor’ and the ‘Protestant Pope.’ He was
given a Presidential Medal of Freedom by Ronald Reagan. Hollywood even gave him
his own ‘Billy Graham Star’ on the city’s footpath.

Billy Graham was greatly honoured in life and
death. This blog will highlight his greatest legacy: The Bible Says. …

Kameel Majdali

Born isn Los Angeles to Arab-American parents, I was raise without religion or faith. In my mid teens I came to faith in Christ and so my journey began. I encountered the Middle East at 21 and made my move their for a visit to celebrate a cousins wedding and so I then moved to Jerusalem where I married and was ordained in the ministry.